I am a guy who generally shuns romantic movies, but I had always been intrigued by the simple premise of Before Sunrise, a 1995 film about a man and a woman who fall in love literally overnight. I never got around to seeing it until recently, when I had to watch it before seeing this year's sequel, Before Sunset (not to be confused with the Pierce Brosnan/Salma Hayek pic After the Sunset).

Before Sunrise stars Ethan Hawke as Jesse, a twenty-something American wandering through Europe by train, and Julie Delpy as Celine, a twenty-something French woman returning to Paris from a relative's funeral. They meet by chance on a train and eventually decide to while the night away in Vienna together, before Jesse's flight departs in the morning. The couple wanders around the city, getting to know each other and themselves better as they go. If that sounds simple, it is. The only other characters are those whom Jesse and Celine happen to encounter along the way.

With such a basic storyline, the film relies entirely on the work of Hawke and Delpy. Fortunately the two conjure up an open honesty rarely seen on screen. They never seem to be acting, and their interactions are consistently fresh, as though they had been through separate rehearsals before showing up to work together. Their dialogue is casual without being overly so, but is still cautious enough to be appropriate for the given stage of the relationship.

Beyond the words, the gestures complement the relationship superbly as well. The way their eyes avoid each other at first. The multiple times Jesse reaches out to almost touch Celine before thinking the better of it. How Celine coyly seems to enjoy being the object of his affection, then later saying exactly that, how she likes his eyes on her. These physical actions reinforce the verbal communication and elevate the picture to the next level of excellence.

In my mind, Before Sunrise portrays how falling love should be, except over a much longer period of time. There is a semi-awkward feeling-out stage, followed by sheer pleasure in the other's company, followed by the requisite bumps in the road, leading to an ultimately satisfying relationship. In less than two hours, Before Sunrise presents as realistic a portrayal of love and interpersonal relations as I can recall, a sort of ultra-compact When Harry Met Sally... filled with honest and open dialogue that is wonderfully free of melodrama. That absence will vex some, particularly those accustomed to the over-the-top romance of most American movies, but those with patience will experience a well-told story about human interaction.

The film is not perfect, as certain third act decisions will send the approval of some through the roof, disappoint a few (me), and cause yet others to be wildly indifferent. This all depends on the personality of the viewer, as the final scenes will cause you to genuinely ponder what you want the characters to do, and what you would do under similar circumstances. Despite my selective antipathy, that's a sign of a good and effective film, one that causes people to take sides as they determine what should, would, and could occur.

Before Sunrise is a predecessor to recent critics' darlings like Lost in Translation and Garden State, a film that uses self-exploratory conversation to advance the basic story. If you liked either of those films, you should appreciate this one, and if you liked this one, check out the sequel, which is now on DVD. I dole out an eight of ten, which considering the subject matter, is high praise indeed.

DVD Note

The DVD is bare bones. No commentary, featurettes, or deleted scenes. Just a few trailers, languages, and that all important "extra" of scene selections. Blah.




This review is my sixth entry in the Lean-N-Mean III write-off.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good Date Movie